


How Game of Thrones s8 Should Have Gone

by RakshaGoldenCub



Category: Game of Thrones (TV)
Genre: 8x01 and 8x02 can stay but the rest are changed completely, Canon Rewrite, F/F, F/M, Fix-It, Not Canon Compliant, Pro-Daenerys, Pro-Sansa, although not really a fix-it because everyone still dies, but hey it's game of thrones what do you expect, but let's be real that's probably for the best
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-05-19
Updated: 2019-05-19
Packaged: 2020-03-08 01:18:29
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,911
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18885196
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/RakshaGoldenCub/pseuds/RakshaGoldenCub
Summary: With the last episode of Game of Thrones airing tonight, I thought I'd share how I imagined the final season and how I would have written it if I were the writers. It's not canon compliant after s8e2 but it does pull some of the good ideas that existed from s8 so there is still a spoiler warning if you've not watched s8 yet.





	How Game of Thrones s8 Should Have Gone

**Episodes 1 & 2 **exactly like D&D's version of Season 8, with characters preparing for the Battle for Winterfell. Brienne becomes Ser Brienne of Tarth, Brienne and Jaime get together, Arya and Gendry get together, Daenerys finds out about Jon's parentage, etc. 

**Episode 3:**

They lose the Battle for Winterfell. Ice dragon Viserion has the Night King as its rider and the two of them manage to destroy a good portion of the living's army. Bran wargs into Viserion to stop the destruction but the undead choose to sacrifice their ice dragon if it means killing the 3-eyed raven. One of the Night King's generals throws a spear to kill Viserion, which kills Bran as well since he was warged into the dragon at the time. The Night King falls from Viserion's back as they both plummet but he’s undead so he just gets back up and continues marching. Sansa watches her brother die under the weirwood tree and is confused because there are no clear battle wounds. Then the whitewalkers break through their army's ranks and make their way into the courtyard. Sansa watches Theon and his soldiers protect her. 

Arya doesn’t know about Bran's death but she is fighting for her life and manages to kill that night king general. Lyanna kills the giant and dies. Jon Snow rides atop Rhaegal but they’re overwhelmed by whitewalkers and Rhaegal dies. Jon Snow is alone against an army of whitewalkers, but Jorah comes in to help fight. The two stand back to back and fight until Daenerys gets there with Drogon. She grabs the two of them and get them on the dragon but they still barely manage to escape with their lives. 

She lands next to Sansa and Bran’s dead body. Theon tells Daenerys and Sansa that they need to retreat or they’ll die and he suggests going to the Iron Islands and meeting back up with Yara. He’s then killed by the Night King who has entered the courtyard with the rest of his troops. Daenerys makes the call and gets Sansa with Bran's body on Drogon so that they can get to safety. Jorah and Jon fight as they retreat, spreading the information to the last remaining troops. Jorah is killed after giving a final retreat warning that Arya and Melisandre are able to hear. Melisandre uses the last bit of her power to brighten the whole battlefield and destabilize the dead army. She dies while the rest are escaping. Her power sets the weirwood tree on fire and it burns to a crisp, Theon's dead body lying beneath it. 

**Episode 4:**

The good guys are running away and trying to escape. Jon Snow takes up the end and fights off all the dead so that there’s time to help as many people survive as possible. Jon Snow protects the group as they escape death, but he is finally overwhelmed and killed in battle. Sansa and the Night King meet eyes as he steps over Jon’s dead body. She wants to go back for him, but Arya pulls her forward with the rest. The Night King turns away from them and heads in a different direction, like he doesn’t care about them anymore now that Bran is dead – he has some new enemy now.  


Those that are still alive include Sandor, Arya, Sansa, Daenerys, Brienne, Gendry, Varys, Tyrion, Jaime, Greyworm, Missandei, Samwell, Gilly, baby Sam.  


They head for the Iron Islands where Yara can help. Episode ends with a close up of Jon Snow lying dead in a snowy field of the dead. Jon Snow’s eyes open and they're ice blue. He's a whitewalker.

**Episode 5:**

Cersei learns of the defeat at Winterfell and sends Euron’s army to destroy Daenerys and the Iron Islands once and for all. Cersei talks to Qyburn and we find out that she isn’t actually pregnant. She made it up just to keep Jaime with her. Harry Strickland of the Golden Company overhears this. Cersei commands Qyburn to prepare for the Night King with wildfire. Daenerys arrives at the Iron Islands and finds that Yara has actually managed to take it back. 

The rest of the group arrives and they all mourn their dead. Sansa and Daenerys bond over their mourning of Jon (while also finding time to mourn Jorah, Theon, Bran, Rhaegal, etc.) Daenerys tells Sansa the truth of Jon’s parentage but Sansa decides that Jon Snow will always be her brother, regardless of parentage. Gendry is given the title of Lord of Storm’s End and Gendry Baratheon. He asks Arya to be his little woman and Arya tells him that she has no interest in being the Lady of Storm’s End.

**Episode 6:**

Euron’s army attacks. Euron’s ship is destroyed by Drogon and Daenerys but Euron survives. He swims to shore where Yara greets him and kills him. Daenerys goes a little mad and wants to kill Cersei for refusing to help fight the Night King (basically leading to Jon’s, Rhaegal’s, and Jorah's deaths) and choosing to attack them while they’re licking their wounds. Daenerys prepares a march by land to Riverrun and the Isle of Faces, heading for King’s Landing. 

Jaime wants to return to King’s Landing ahead of Daenerys’s army to try and change Cersei’s mind (he’s the father of her baby and the only one she will listen to). Daenerys argues that she should hold him hostage until Cersei forfeits. Brienne hates the idea but Jaime shuts it down anyways, pointing out that Cersei’s children are all that matter to her and the possibility of his death wouldn’t make her forfeit. Jaime heads for King’s Landing with Ser Davos who will smuggle him into the Red Keep. Brienne begs Jaime not to go, telling him that he owes nothing to his sister, asking him to stay with her and choose her. He tells her that he does choose her, but that won't matter if the Night King slaughters all of the living in his path. He's the only one who can make his sister see reason. She's a good person, he swears, she just needs his help to see it too. Brienne cries because she knows it will be the last time she sees Jaime. 

Unbeknownst to Jaime, Daenerys meets with Sansa, Tyrion, Varys, Arya, Sandor, and Yara to discuss next steps. They agree that the best way to win this war with the Night King would be to unite their armies with the Golden Company, but that won't happen while Cersei lives. Varys suggests that capturing or killing Cersei is the only way they'll get Cersei's army without unnecessary bloodshed. Arya and Sandor are given the task of heading for King's Landing with the plan to either capture or kill Cersei Lannister, preferably capture so that they can use her as a hostage to command her armies. Daenerys sends Yara to travel by ship away from the Night King, sneak back into Winterfell, and collect dragonglass. They will need it to prepare for the final assault with the Night King. Tormund volunteers to go with her because he knows that he's one of the few who can survive the snow of the North and is capable of sneaking around whitewalkers. 

**Episode 7:**

Jon marches with the Night King through Greywater Watch. The swamps turn icy under them and they kill everyone in their path. Jon almost wakes up but can’t control his actions and kills Meera Reed. Back in King's Landing, Qyburn has wildfire fucking everywhere. Cut scene to Daenerys who has been marching with the last of her armies and the last of the Iron Islands. She arrives at the Godseye and rides in a boat with Greyworm, Missandei, Tyrion, and Sansa to the Isle of Faces. They meet the greenmen, learn that the Night King is marching to kill this group as it’s the kingdom’s last line of defense from the long winter. They learn who the Night King is and why he’s so hell-bent on destruction of man. They decide to make their final stand against the Night King here. 

**Episode 8:**

Jaime and Davos arrive in King’s Landing. Arya and the Hound arrive as well. Jaime and Davos sneak in through the tunnels while Arya and the Hound go through the city. All 4 manage to get all the way to the Red Keep. Jaime and Davos fight Strickland and his guards in the tunnels under the Red Keep. They defeat Strickland’s men but Davos is knocked out. Cut scene to Arya and the Hound who come across Qyburn. They listen in as he is ordering men to set huge barrels of wildfire under every part of the city – orders from the Queen. Qyburn runs off and they kill the two soldiers he was talking to. The Hound points out that there is enough wildfire in these barrels to raze King’s Landing to the ground. They head for Cersei.

Back in the tunnels, Jaime fights Strickland. Strickland wins and Jamie is stabbed by Strickland, who taunts him with the knowledge that the baby in Cersei doesn’t actually exist. While Strickland is taunting him, Davos wakes up and cuts off Strickland’s head. Jaime, limping because of his stab wound, heads up the tunnel steps with Davos helping carry him. They find Arya and the Hound. Davos explains the situation with Strickland and Cersei’s not-so-real baby. Arya tells them about the wildfire. Davos decides he needs to search King’s Landing to find where the wildfire has already been set. He leaves. Jaime tells them that Cersei is still a good person but she must be stopped and then he closes his eyes. 

**Episode 9:**

The Mountain stands guard outside Cersei’s room. The Hound finds him and they have an epic battle scene. Cersei is in her room staring at King’s Landing. We hear Jaime’s voice before we see him. He asks if she’s angry with him for leaving for Winterfell. They’re closed off from each other but Cersei is still eternally grateful to see him alive. They talk about their children and the dangers that they’ve gone through. He offers to take her out of the city where they can run away together with their baby. She tells him that their baby will be safer in King’s Landing with the protection she offers. He gets angry and tells her to be honest about the baby. She’s surprised but admits that she could feel him pulling away from her and she lied because she hoped that the thought of family would be enough to keep him. She realizes that obviously that didn’t work since he still chose to protect the North over her. 

Cut scene to Daenerys who is preparing to fight with the magic of the greenmen on her side. Yara has arrived with the dragonglass she stole from Winterfell and informed the group there that there were no dead bodies in Winterfell. They realize this means that Jon will probably be one of the undead in the army. Sansa asks Daenerys if she will be able to do what she has to do if she meets Jon on the battlefield. Daenerys seems unsure and frightened by the prospect of killing someone she loves and tells Sansa that she doesn't know how. Sansa hands her a knife made of dragon glass and reminds her to "stick them with the pointy end". It's a reminder to the audience that while Daenerys may have the dragons and the years of experience as a leader, Sansa has the years of education in fear, war, and politics. She knows how to be dispassionate about killing one's enemies. 

Cut scene to the Mountain and the Hound as they fight. The Hound gets a few stabs in but it’s not enough to kill the Mountain. The Mountain gouges at the Hound’s eyes with his thumbs but the Hound manages to stab the Mountain in the eye. The Hound pushes the two of them from the top of the Red Keep into a vat of wildfire, burning them to pieces. Davos sees them fall. 

Cut back to Cersei. She tells Jaime she doesn’t need to run because she has a secret weapon against Daenerys and the Night King and anyone else who would try to take her position as Queen. He grabs her arm and yells at her that wildfire is a terrible and dangerous solution that might destroy King’s Landing and everyone in it. She kisses him and says she doesn’t care about anyone in it besides the two of them. The rest can burn. 

Jaime holds her tight and tells her that she sounds like the Mad King with talk like that. Cersei rolls her eyes at this and decides she’s fine with being the Mad Queen – it’s better than that dragon bitch. And if it takes killing every person in King’s Landing to defeat her enemies, she’ll do it. He begs her to listen to reason – that they can go to Pentos and be free from the Night King and free from the dragons. She tells him she doesn’t love him enough to be a commoner. He’s only good for what he can produce for her (babies) and he didn’t even manage to do that. He strangles her. Before she dies, he rips off the mask and reveals that he’s been Arya this whole time. She has only been making the comments about Pentos because Daenerys asked her to try and bring Cersei back alive. 

**Episode 10:**

The whitewalkers arrive to the Isle of Faces and the lake turns to ice around them. Daenerys’s army fights Jon and the Night King. Jon manages to kill lots of men while Rhaegal fights Drogon in a sibling versus zombie-sibling battle. Daenerys finds Jon Snow who then tries to kill her as well. With tears in her eyes, she tells Drogon “Dracarys” and he breathes fire at Jon Snow. But fire cannot kill a dragon. Jon Snow doesn’t die but he wakes up long enough to realize who he is. 

He fights against the whitewalkers and heads for the Night King. He tries to head for the Night King but is continuously blocked by the Night King's generals. He duels the Night King's generals in an epic battle with 4 of them against 1 of him. Rhaegal comes in and breathes icy fire on the battlefield and kills the generals, leaving Jon Snow able to fight the Night King. He stabs the Night King who turns to dust in front of him. The rest of the undead army falls down and turns to dust and the only undead left moving are Jon Snow and Rhaegal. 

Jon has a teary reunion with Sansa and Daenerys but he’s still a dead man and can’t continue with them to fight Cersei. He decides Winter has been here in the South too long and it’s time to return North. The greenmen thank Jon and Rhaegal and call the dragon “Lightbringer” which makes Tyrion and Varys believe that Jon must truly be the “Prince who was Promised”. 

Jon Snow takes his undead dragon Rhaegal and they fly beyond the wall. As they fly, Jon Snow is reminded of his Night's Watch Oath: _"Night gathers, and now my watch begins. It shall not end until my death. I shall take no wife, hold no lands, father no children. I shall wear no crowns and win no glory. I shall live and die at my post. I am the sword in the darkness. I am the watcher on the walls. I am the shield that guards the realms of men. I pledge my life and honor to the Night's Watch, for this night and all the nights to come."_ Rhaegal and him can live forever as defenders of the living in the South. 

Daenerys tells Greyworm and his unsullied fighters that they need to ready their men to march on King's Landing. Tyrion asks if that's wise since they so recently defeated the Night King and their armies are not at full strength. He suggests that they wait to hear from Jaime and Davos first. Daenerys claims that Cersei will continue to consolidate her forces until she is stopped - waiting will just give Cersei more time to strengthen her troops. They march for Cersei Lannister and King's Landing. 

**Episode 11:**

Daenerys’s army stands outside King's Landing, ready to fight. They haven’t heard from the 4 they sent to King’s Landing so they have to assume they’re either dead or betrayed. They are met with a strongly defended castle. Qyburn is ordering the troops and the Golden Company. He mentions to his troops that Cersei is feeling under the weather due to complications with her pregnancy and he has been left in charge as her Hand. Really, Cersei is dead and Qyburn has feigned that she’s alive so he could seize power for himself. The final battle commences against Qyburn’s army. Daenerys destroys a lot of King’s Landing and most of the Golden Company. They use wildfire against their own people in their haste to defeat her. 

Daenerys sees Qyburn in the battle and he's protected by a huge troop of Golden Company members, all using Scorpions to try and kill her dragon. They're also surrounded by huge vats of wildfire so she can't kill them without setting the city ablaze. Her and Drogon dodge the scorpions as they head for Qyburn. Rather than using their fire, Drogon grabs Qyburn with his claws and wrenches him into the air, squeezing his body to death. On their escape swing, Drogon is killed by a scorpion spear shot by a masked man. Drogon and Daenerys fall to their deaths similar to how the Night King and Viserion fell to their deaths in Ep 3. But Daenerys doesn't get back up. 

Gendry attacks that Golden Company troop and kills them, including cutting the head off the masked man, who it turns out is Ilyn Payne. The battle is still won and Daenerys’s army has defeated Qyburn’s. Arya and Davos ring the bells to signify the city’s surrender. 

**Episode 12:**

Funeral held for Daenerys, Drogon, and all the rest. Only ones left alive are Greyworm, Missandei, Sansa, Arya, Yara, Gendry, Brienne, Tyrion, Varys, Samwell, Gilly, baby Sam. Greyworm and Missandei ride off into the sunset together, with their unsullied army; they head off to Naath to protect it from slave-traders and live happily ever after. 

Arya is stopped by one of the Faceless Men and is asked if her list is finally completed. Her list originally consisted of these people:  
The Hound (died S8E9)  
Meryn Trant (died S5)  
King Joffrey Baratheon (died S4)  
Melisandre (died S8E3)  
Thoros (died S7)  
Cersei Lannister (died S8E9)  
Ser Ilyn Payne (died S8E11)  
Polliver (died S4)  
The Mountain (died S8E9)  
Rorge (died S4)  
Walder Frey (died S6)  
Tywin Lannister (died S4)  
Beric Dondarrion (died S8E3)  


She tells him that her list is complete, but he claims that she is wrong because she has one more on her list. He hands her a sheet of paper and leaves. 

The team all meet to decide what to do next. Tyrion claims that there are very few people left of noble blood who could take the throne now: Sansa because she’s the last living Stark, Gendry because he’s the last living Baratheon, Tyrion because he’s the last living Lannister, and Yara because she’s the last living Greyjoy. 

Sansa wants nothing to do with King’s Landing because she wants to go back and be the Lady of Winterfell. Gendry wants nothing to do with King’s Landing because he wants to be the Lord of Storm’s End. Yara wants nothing to do with King’s Landing because she wants to go back and be the Lady of the Iron Islands. Tyrion could do it but he doesn't want it and he'll be distrusted by everyone because he's a dwarf who killed his own mother and father and he is the brother of the late tyrant Cersei Lannister. Gendry technically has the best claim to the throne since Robert Baratheon was the last agreed-upon-king, but Gendry was a bastard only a few short weeks ago so it’s a pretty tenuous claim – not a claim that the lords of the North or pretty much anyone else will recognize. 

Arya tells everyone what must happen: Sansa must marry Gendry and they must rule as King and Queen in King’s Landing. Varys and Tyrion are thoughtful at this since they clearly don't mind marrying two people who aren't in love if it means peace for the seven kingdoms. Gendry is shocked. Sansa immediately is affronted by the idea of this, arguing that she left King's Landing because she's not a broodmare who should be married off to whatever King fits the fancy. Arya argues right back that Sansa should just rule as Queen then - she's the smartest one in the room and clearly the only one fit for the position. Sansa reminds Arya that there must always be a Stark in Winterfell and asks if Arya has plans to be the Lady of Winterfell? Arya, who already turned down the prospect of titles with Gendry, gets annoyed and says that she doesn't care who the new ruler is and it's not going to affect her anyways. She walks out. 

Gendry runs after her and tells he has no interest in marrying her sister or in being King. She points out that the greatest kings rarely are the ones who seek power. And people of noble blood don’t have to love one another to have their marriage arranged. She tells him that Sansa was born and bred to be Queen and she was meant to be the kind of wife that Gendry wants. Sansa would make a much better bride than Arya ever could. 

**Later in Episode 12, it's clear that months have gone by.** Yara, now the Lady of the Iron Islands, has a new girlfriend and invites her to a wedding. Sansa and Gendry are getting married and neither look happy about it in the least. Something fishy is going on and there are faceless men doing weird things, building suspense and being sneaky. 

Small council:  
• Hand of the King/Queen is Tyrion. He has no family, no-one to love, and no prince who was promised. He thought he was so wise and yet the world still managed to defeat him. He rules as Hand but only because he needs to pay for his past mistakes.  
• Grand Maester is Samwell Tarly. He has Gilly and baby Sam but he's lost his best friends and is still sorrowful.  
• Lord Commander of the Guard (not Kingsguard or Queensguard) is Ser Brienne of Tarth. She is happy with her role as the guard for Sansa but she's upset about Jaime's death and doesn't like the idea of this wedding to Gendry because she knows it makes Sansa unhappy. Podrick is one of the guardsmen under her charge and it's now Ser Podrick.  
• Master of Whisperers is Varys. He's pretty content with how things worked out overall, although he is also upset that Daenerys could not be his one true Queen.  
• Master of Coin is Bronn. He's content with all the power he now controls and helps to control the brothels that will bring money back to the city. He's pretty much the only one who is happy.  
• Master of Ships is Ser Davos Seaworth. He's sad to see all the men he fought beside (Stannis, Jon Snow, etc.) dead, but he's glad that a Baratheon is finally able to sit on the throne again.  
• Lord of the Night's Watch is Tormund Giantsbane (not present in the meeting but FYI).

At the council meeting, Sansa and Gendry speak with their small council members. They explain that while they've agreed to marry, it's only for show. Sansa will go back to the North and rule from Winterfell. Gendry will go South and rule from Storm's End. They will meet in King's Landing when decisions must be made. Bronn asks if they plan to fuck from across the 7 Kingdoms as well and Sansa informs him that she has no plan to bear children. Varys asks how the line of sucession is supposed to continue and Gendry explains that it won't. When they die, the Lords and Ladies of the 7 Kingdoms will come together and vote for a new King or Queen. Sansa has seen the danger of succession lines and what they can do to a kingdom. Sometimes the children of Kings and Queens aren't worthy of the throne themselves. The council head to the wedding.

At the wedding, you’re expecting something evil to happen (as all weddings in this show do) and you're kind of hoping it happens because nobody is really excited about this wedding. But it goes off without a hitch, with Sansa and Gendry being hailed as King and Queen of the Seven Kingdoms. Arya watches from the distance as the love of her life marries her sister. She holds the little slip of paper in her hands but we still can’t make out what it say. Jaqen H’ghar is there and tells her that it’s time to finish her list. She agrees and drops the slip of paper. They leave and the camera panes back to her slip of paper. The last name on the list is Arya Stark. 

**Explanation**

The end is bittersweet, with nobody really happy. The last living Stark (that we know is alive since we're not really clear on what happened to Arya) is Sansa who can't continue the family name because she's a woman. The last living Lannister is Tyrion who is a dwarf and therefore seen as illegitimate by the time period he lives in. The last living Targaryen is Jon Snow who is undead and no one would really count as living. And the last living Baratheon is Gendry who is still a bastard in the eyes of many. 

Daenerys dies and doesn't win the throne, but she dies because of the two qualities that she has maintained throughout all 8 seasons: her impatience in battle and her kindness to the innocent. She was too impatient to wait and see if her forces could gather more strength. She was also too impatient to wait to kill Qyburn or let her army help her in defeating Qyburn. On the other hand, she showed kindness to the innocent when she refused to burn King's Landing to the ground using either her dragon or the wildfire. Her flaws led to her demise but in the most poetic way possible. 

The prophecies all come true but not in the way you expect. Cersei only had 3 kids and was killed by her valonqar (little brother) but it turned out to actually be Arya wearing Jaime's face. The prince who was promised was actually Jon Snow all along. As a Stark he had the ability to think for himself without the Night King's influence even as a member of the undead (something we know he can do because Benjen Stark, his uncle, manages to do it). As a Targaryen, he cannot be killed by fire, which is one of the few things that is supposed to be able to defeat the undead. 

Jon Snow combines his family's abilities in the ultimate test of ice and fire, and he defeats the long night. But because he's undead he is not able to take the spot as the King of anything. He basically rejoins the Night's Watch and rejoins the Free Folk, the only two groups of people he's ever felt connected to. His Lightbringer ended up being his dragon mount Rhaegal and we can assume that in his undead lifetime he'll learn to warg into Rhaegal just like Bran was able to warg into Viserion. 

Sansa and Gendry rule as even halves of the throne but not as lovers. They each have fought to earn the titles that they've been given and they've survived great hardships to reach where they're at now. It's good because they survive but it's bittersweet because neither are really happy. In war though no matter if you win or lose, you'll never really be happy. George R. R. Martin always has said that he hated how Tolkien ended Lord of the Rings because it ends with everyone happy and GRRM believes that war leaves no winners - only losers with a throne. So that's what Sansa and Gendry get. They lose any love available to them and lose all of the family they've ever known. But they both get thrones. 

I leave Arya's end up to interpretation. You could argue she does what D&D decide she does and she heads west to discover what's west of Westeros, leaving the name Arya Stark to die. You could argue she heads east and returns with the Faceless Men to Braavos to complete her training, finally able to give up her family for good. You could also argue that she just dies. Regardless, her story arc is complete. 

As for the finale, it's supposed to end with the wheel being broken. In this case, some parts of the wheel are broken. Women and men rule evenly on the thrones, the line of succession is forever destroyed, there is the burgeoning spark of democracy, and the Unsullied are still able to go around the world ending slavery with Missandei and Grey Worm as their leaders. 


End file.
